Revocable Living Trust for Pets

The process of funding your living trust by transferring your assets to the trustee is an important part of what helps your loved ones avoid probate court in the event of your death or incapacity. Qualified retirement accounts such as 401(k)s, 403(b)s, IRAs, and annuities, should not be put in a living trust.

A Revocable Living Trust DefinedAssets can include real estate, valuable possessions, bank accounts and investments. As with all living trusts, you create it during your lifetime.

As far as the Internal Revenue Service is concerned, trust property belongs to the grantor. The grantor names a trustee to manage the assets, but during their lifetime, most people name themselves in this position. A successor trustee is named to carry on when the grantor dies or becomes incapacitated.

There are pros and cons to revocable living trusts. Some of the Pros of a Revocable Trust. It lets your estate avoid probate. It lets you avoid ancillary probate in another state. It protects you in the event you become incapacitated. It offers no tax benefits. It lacks asset protection.

I will just name my pet as a beneficiary to get around these restrictions. Well, you would be wrong if you did that, because just as your animal is not able to own property, they are not able to be a beneficiary in a trust, will, or any other testamentary instrument.

Most people can create a living trust without an attorney using software or an online service.

Paperwork. Setting up a living trust isn't difficult or expensive, but it requires some paperwork. Record Keeping. After a revocable living trust is created, little day-to-day record keeping is required. Transfer Taxes. Difficulty Refinancing Trust Property. No Cutoff of Creditors' Claims.

The need for a lawyer to help with your estate has nothing to do with a Revocable Living Trust. If your executor could handle your estate alone, then there is no need for a lawyer even if you had no Revocable Living Trust.For example, with filing inheritance and estate tax returns or obtaining beneficiary releases.

A pet trust is a legally sanctioned arrangement providing for the care and maintenance of one or more companion animals in the event of a grantor's disability or death.Typically, a trustee will hold property (cash, for example) in trust for the benefit of the grantor's pets.